Beyond Blossongs and Blessings
by Beth C
Summary: Two weeks have passed since the incident with Daisy's garden but Bo is still suffering. This is part 2 in the Bo's Allergies Series.


_**Beyond Blossoms and Blessings**_

_**By Beth C**_

Summary: Two weeks have passed since the incident with Daisy's garden but Bo is still suffering. This is the second part in the Bo's allergy series. It would help to read Bo's Budding Blossoms before you read this.

Rating: PG

Feedback: Sure. The more the better and the more I will write.

Disclaimer: Not mine. I sure wish they were. WB owns them, I think.

----------

Dirt and leaves flew up in the air as the orange stock car practically flew down the dusky country back road. It was being followed by a white sheriff's cruiser, complete with red and blue flashing lights and a very loud siren.

The driver of the orange car was watching the road carefully, maneuvering around the bends and twists like a seasoned NASCAR driver. The wind coming in the window whipped his blond hair back from his face. His passenger was getting the same treatment, as the dark locks on his cousin were disheveled from the breeze.

Bo Duke took a moment to remove one hand from the steering wheel to rub the underside of his nose gently. Ever since the incident with Daisy's garden, his nose had been extra-sensitive to just about anything.

He had kept his family pretty much unawares, as he didn't need his other cousin Daisy feeling any more guilty than she already was. The greenhouse had been set up and the incident dismissed. Any reactions he had been having to the flowers had been minimal, however it now seemed his nose was reacting to things he hadn't been allergic to before.

Dust, grass, and even feathers were beginning to become misery inducers for Bo. He would hold back his sneezy reactions for as long as possible, then excuse himself to the bathroom where he would muffle as many sneezes as possible into towels, before rinsing his face off until he looked normal.

However it was times like this, when he was alone with Luke, that made any such hiding of his condition next to impossible. He hoped they would reach the local pub, the Boar's Nest before his nose gave way on him.

Then they had passed Rosco, the local sheriff.

The car had immediately pulled out behind them and the lights had gone on. Bo had groaned and floored the gas. He was proud that the General Lee immediately picked up speed, pressing both Bo and Luke back into their seats.

He had spun the car around once, trying to lose Rosco, but that had the unfortunate effect of filling the car with clouds of dust from the spinning tires. Dust was one thing Bo did not need.

He rubbed the back of his nose on the cuff of his shirt, and tried to go back to concentrating on losing Rosco somewhere.

Luke was alternating between keeping an eye on Bo, and keeping tabs on the car behind them. He knew something was bothering his cousin, as Bo was keeping very quiet. Normally the car would have been filled with excited chatter, as they worked out which way to go and dump the pursuing car into a swamp or pond. The silence he was faced with now was just plain odd.

He was about to confront Bo and ask him just what was wrong when he realized that the silence was coming from outside the car as well. He had been so intent on watching Bo that he had missed the point where Rosco had disappeared.

Luke twisted his head around and searched the area to see if he could spot the missing car. "Hey, Bo, did you see which way Rosco went?"

Bo did a classic double take. "He was just behind us." Sure enough the road behind them was empty. He swiped again at his nose while Luke was distracted. The dust had settled inside and was making it tickle something fierce. "He couldn't have gone far. There are very few turnoffs on this road." He shifted gears, not sure yet if he should slow down to regular driving speed, knowing Rosco was somewhere nearby. "Let me know if you see him."

As he rounded another curve the wind in his face had turned the tickle into something that could no longer be ignored. He automatically lifted his hand to cover the lower half of his face as he took in a sharp breath of air. _"heh- HehhheCHIshh!" _The sneeze was short and wet. He wiped his hand on his jeans and tried to distract his cousin from saying anything. "Did you find him yet?"

"No." Luke answered, "Maybe something happened to him. We should turn back to make sure."

Bo was about to agree but found himself speechless. That one small sneeze had done nothing but aggravate his sensitive nose. His breath hitched again, and his hand rose as his eyes blinked shut. _"Heh-KESHhhh! Heh-EhhShoo!"_ He quickly recovered and wiped his hand again on his jeans. He hated sneezing and driving, especially when they were traveling at a high rate of speed.

Luke had narrowed his eyes at his cousin. If what he was thinking was right, Bo was going to be doing much more of that sneezing. "Bless you." He reached one hand over to touch his cousin lightly on the shoulder. "You alright?"

Bo nodded. "Thanks. I'm fine, Luke." It was at that point that the cousins noticed where Rosco had disappeared to as they rounded another bend.

The cruiser was parked sideways across the road, blocking it completely. Rosco was standing beside his car, looking like the wolf in a henhouse.

Bo had barely enough time to slam on the brakes and turn the wheel sharply in order to keep the General from slamming into the cop car head on. Clouds of dirt and dust rose in the air as they slid to a complete stop.

Luke jumped out the window, and ran over to where Rosco was now crouching. The officer had been so sure that his car was going to be hit that he had taken cover. He now stood up and put his big canary eating grin back on his face.

Luke stood there completely surprised. "How the heck did you get in front of us?"

Rosco ignored the question. "I got ya! Khee, khee, khee! You should see your faces. You boys didn't know I could do that!" Rosco was practically jumping up and down with excitement over his latest trick.

Bo had climbed halfway out of the car, and was resting on the doorframe. The clouds of dust were now settling back down but it wasn't doing much for his sinuses. He sniffed a tickle away. "Alright, you got us. Mind telling us what for this time?" He ended his sentence by swiping his nose quickly with the cuff of his sleeve. "We ain't done nothing wrong today."

"That's right." Rosco surprisingly agreed.

Now Luke was confused. "Then why you chasing us?"

Rosco was strutting around between both cars. "Just to show you I can catch ya if I wanted. Khee, khee, khee!"

Bo grimaced, both from Rosco's pompous behavior and the very urgent need to sneeze again. He tried to sniff it away again, but it wasn't working. "We ai-ain't go-got," he paused and brought his fist up under his nose, unable to halt the explosion. _"Heh-Keshhhh!" _That was quickly followed by another strong sneeze. _"HahCHuhh!"_ A very sharp sniff after halted any remaining sneezes for the moment.

Rosco had jumped and turned to Bo. "Gesundheit."

"Thanks." He swiped his hand across the lower half of his face. "As I was sayin, we ain't got the time to be playing games, Rosco."

Rosco's face fell. He obviously was proud of his little trick. "Well, if I'da wanted to, I coulda arrested you boys."

Luke was already heading back to the car. "Maybe we can play later, Rosco. When we ain't in so much of a hurry." He slid easily back inside the car and noticed Bo was already starting it up.

"Yeah, Rosco," Bo added. "We'll come back later and you can tell us all about how you tricked us." He then waved and hit the musical horn. To the blaring tune of Dixie, he turned the car around and pulled away, leaving Rosco behind.

He turned to Luke. "Now that was strange. What do you make of that?"

"I'm not sure what to make of Rosco anymore. However what I am sure of, is Daisy ain't gonna be happy if we are late."

Bo quickly located the correct road that would take them to the Boar's Nest. "Yeah, you're right."

They arrived at the Boar's Nest within twenty minutes. Bo turned the car off but didn't get out right away.

Luke had climbed right out and when he saw he wasn't being joined by his cousin, he glanced inside the car. "You comin?"

Bo was panting into his closed fist. _"he-eh,"_ as his eyes squeezed shut. _"hah-Hahchuhh!" _The sneeze was harsh and followed by another. _"KEHT-CHhhh!" _Tears formed at the corners of his eyes as he finished off with a third sneeze. _"Heh-HEKT-chuhh!"_

Luke rested his arms on the doorframe. "Bless you. You know you've been doing a lot of that today."

Bo dragged his hand along the leg of his jeans as he climbed out of the window. Standing now, he wiped away the tears that had formed before they could run free. "Yeah, I know." He began to walk towards the entrance to the bar.

Luke joined him and draped one arm around the other man's shoulders so that they were walking together. "Any idea of what's causing it?"

Bo shook his head. "No clue, but I wish it would stop."

Luke opened the door and any reply he could have made would have been drowned out by the music playing inside. They walked into the bar and quickly crossed to the other side of the room where the main bar sat away from the jukebox.

Bo sat on one of the barstools and hooked the heels of his boots into the bottom rung. Luke joined him on the stool next to him. Both boys scanned the room for their cousin Daisy.

Luke located her first. She was coming out of the back room where Boss Hogg was usually holed up doing some shady business deal of one kind or another. She saw the boys and waved.

They waved back and she weaved her way over to the bar. "You're late," she said as a way of greeting. "Y'all were supposed to be here a half hour ago."

"Tell that to Rosco, who just up and decided that he wanted to play," Luke retorted.

"Yeah, he dang near chased us all the way to Styx Creek," Bo added.

Daisy filled two mugs with beer and placed them down in front of the boys. "Alright, I forgive you this time. Let me get my stuff from the back while you drink those down, then we need to go." She stepped away from the bar. "I promised Mr. & Mrs. Collins that I would sit their kids today so they can get some time alone together." She walked off, and smiled at the many people she passed.

Luke grabbed his beer and sipped it. "I'll be glad once Cooter finishes fixing her jeep."

Bo picked up his beer and took a hearty gulp of the frothy brew. He realized too late that the foam at the top wasn't going to help his tortured nose today. He quickly put the mug down and grabbed one of the bar napkins, barely bringing it to his face in time. _"KHET-chhhhhh!_ _  
Heh-HEKT-Chuhhh!_" He took a deep breath and blew his nose hard.

Luke was getting beyond worried now. He placed his mug down as Bo tossed the used napkins in the rubbish. "Bo, I think you need to tell Uncle Jessie."

That remark earned him an icy blue glare. "No." Bo picked up his drink and waited for the foam to settle before drinking it. "He will just baby me again, Luke. I'm fine, an I don't need no babyin."

Luke didn't get a chance to argue as Daisy showed back up. He quickly downed the rest of his beer and put the mug aside. "You ready?"

Daisy nodded and led the way out of the bar. Bo was the last to leave, grabbing a few of the napkins and tucking them into his pockets for later.

Bo reached the General just as Luke was climbing in the driver's side.

"Hey!" Bo protested. "I'm drivin!"

Luke fished his car keys out of his front pocket. "Not anymore." He narrowed his eyes at his stubborn cousin.

Daisy watched the interaction between the two boys who were more like brothers than cousins. She had the distinct feeling she was missing something. "Something wrong?" she asked while looking at Luke.

He shook his head. "No, now get in."

She did and was followed by a sulky Bo. Luke started the car and backed away from the bar. He shifted gears and drove off.

It wasn't long before the silence in the car became unbearable for her. She sighed. "Now I know somethin's wrong. You boys are never this quiet." First she looked at Bo who was staring out the window, pouting. Then she looked over to where Luke was apparently concentrating deeply on the road.

She touched Bo's arm gently. "Come on, Bo, tell me what's wrong."

He shook his head and glared across the front seat to Luke. "It ain't nothing you can help with, Daisy."

"Why don't you tell her, Bo?" Luke spoke up. "Or is it just that you like keeping secrets from your kin now?"

Daisy put her hands in the air to halt any further remarks. "We don't need to be fightin, now. If something's wrong, Uncle Jessie says we should talk about it." She looked to Luke.

He was obviously torn between telling her everything and keeping everything shut inside. Finally, he decided that Bo was going to be the one to tell her. Her and Uncle Jessie when he got back to the farm.

Luke suddenly cranked the car into a hard turn, forcing clouds of dust to rise on the passenger side. He then slammed on the brakes and the car ground to a stop. He looked across the car to his cousin.

Bo was completely unprepared for what Luke had done. He got a full whiff of the dust. His face contorted and he struggled to pull out one of the bar napkins from his pocket. He just barely managed to raise it and cover enough to keep from sneezing on Daisy. _"KHET-chhhhhh! Heh-HEKT-Chuhhh! heh- HehhheCHIshh!!"_ He struggled to breathe and was assaulted by more sneezing. _"hah-Hahchuhh!! KHET-chhhhhh!" _He took another breath and finished with a final, _  
"Heh-EhhShoo!!"_

Daisy had been rubbing Bo's back during the fit. "Oh my goodness. God bless you, Bo!" She watched him pull a fresh napkin out of his pocket and blow his nose hard.

"That's what this is about," Luke said. "He's been sufferin from his allergies and not sayin anything to any of us."

Bo glared at his cousin. "Tattletale." He climbed out of the car and went to sit on the hood where he could get some fresh air.

Daisy squirmed her way out of the car and went to stand next to Bo. She placed one hand on his leg. "Bo, is this all true?"

He didn't confirm or deny it, just sat there and stared off into the distance.

Luke had now climbed out of the car. "Bo, I'm only tellin cause I care about you. We all do." Reasoning with Bo wasn't always the easiest thing to do in any circumstance.

"That's right," Daisy added. "We don't want to see you hurtin, Bo."

Bo sighed, and lowered his head into his hands. "It's not like anyone can do anything about it anyway."

"We'll just have to see about that." Daisy replied. "How long has this been going on?"

Bo lifted his head. "A few weeks, not more than that."

Luke came over and stood beside Daisy. "Now I want you to promise us that you'll tell Uncle Jessie. He needs to know so we can get this cleared up. Unless you like sufferin?"

Bo sighed, "Not really, no."

"Then you promise?"

Bo nodded. "Alright. Once we get home I will."

Daisy was smiling now. "Now that we got all that settled, how about we get back on the road? I've still got a sittin job to do."

They climbed back into the car, with Luke still driving. They dropped Daisy off at the Collins farm, telling her to give them a holler on the CB if she needed a ride home.

Bo managed to keep his allergies at bay for the remainder of the ride home. He still wasn't too pleased with his cousin for what he had done, but he could understand why he did it. He didn't think that he would have been able to hide it for long.

They arrived at the farm and Luke parked the car out front. He turned to Bo. "Now remember, you promised to tell Uncle Jessie."

Bo nodded, "I still don't see how he can do anything." He quickly slid out the window and walked into the farmhouse before Luke could say anything else.

Uncle Jessie was fixing a stew in the kitchen. The air was filled with the scent of multi-seasoned food. Bo greeted him and went to taste something in one of the pots, for which he got a slap on the hand and a very stern look.

"Aw, Uncle Jessie, I was just tastin it. It sure smells good." Bo said as he sniffed the pungent air. That was one thing about his uncle's cooking. It always tasted as good as it smelled. His stomach growled in empathy.

"I'll do the tastin around here, Bo." Jessie said while stirring the mixture. "Ifin you are that hungry already, you can finish off that roast we had yesterday. There ain't gonna be enough room in that icebox for all this food tonight."

Bo smiled, "Thanks." He got himself a plate and prepared a roast sandwich from the meat. He poured himself a glass of milk and went to sit at the table. Just as he was taught, he folded his hands and said grace before picking up the sandwich and took a bite.

Luke walked into the house now, dusting his hands on his jeans. "I fed the chickens for ya," he said while looking at Bo.

Bo swallowed his bite and washed it down with the milk. "Thanks, Cuz."

"Hey that looks good, did you save some for me?" Luke asked while rummaging in the fridge. He located the meat and fixed his own sandwich.

In a few moments Luke was joining him at the table with a sandwich of his own and his own glass of milk. He said his grace and picked up the sandwich. "Did you tell him?" he whispered to Bo.

Bo shook his head. "Not yet," he whispered back. "I'm fine now so I really don't see the need to."

Luke rolled his eyes. "Fine now, yeah, but what about later?" He kept his voice low as he took a bite of the food.

"I'll worry about that later." Bo whispered back.

Jessie was eyeing his two nephews. It wasn't like them to talk low like this. "What y'all whisperin about over there? You got some gossip that you don't think my old ears can handle?"

Both boys looked up sharply. "No, sir," they answered in unison.

"Good." Jessie said while stirring something in one of the three pots cooking on the stove. "Gossip ain't good for nothing, and old wives tales are for old wives."

Both boys quieted down and continued to eat, Luke a bit faster than Bo, as Bo was now having trouble with his nose again. Evidently the seasonings in the air were too much for him.

His nose twitched and he kept rubbing at it, trying to forestall the coming sneezes. Jessie had brought them up to be polite boys and polite boys did not sneeze at the table.

He was coming very close to getting up and going in the bathroom when he felt something being passed to him under the table. Bo scrunched his nose again and pulled out what was passed to him. Luke's blue bandana. He quickly unfolded it, and tossed his cousin a very grateful look before pressing the cloth very tightly against his tortured nose.

His face scrunched up as he practically crushed his nose between his cloth-covered fingers to keep the oncoming explosions silent. His blond head bobbed slightly with each stifled sneeze. Luke counted four of them then a break for a breath and then four more.

Bo then straightened up and wiped his nose, then placed the bandana on his leg and tried to eat more of his sandwich. Luke looked over to where his uncle was standing, his back to the table. He hadn't seen a thing.

Jessie smiled to himself and added a touch more seasoning to the stew, knowing it was being carried in the air to the boys sitting quietly behind him. He had been watching Bo for a week and had seen the boy's allergies getting worse each day, yet Bo still had not approached him for the help he definitely needed.

There was very little Jessie missed on his farm. He just wished the boys didn't have to be so stubborn at times. Getting Bo to admit he needed something was like asking the sun not to set at night. The boy was just too proud and stubborn for his own good.

Jessie turned slightly, just enough to catch the boys in the corner of his eye and pretended to mix something in another pot. He was rewarded with the sight of Bo's head bobbing in a succession of silent sneezes. The boy's shoulders were hunched from the effort of keeping so silent that unless you were actually looking at him, you wouldn't even know.

Jessie smiled again. One more set of spices should do it. Bo was losing control and pretty soon would have some explaining to do. Jessie added them, tossing quite a bit around in the air as he did so.

In less than two minutes, Bo was hunched over and turned away from the table as the full impact of the spice-filled air did it's job on him. He was now having trouble keeping them silent as Jessie could now hear a faint _'ishhh'_ sound after each head bob.

He nodded. Bo was ready now. Jessie turned the stove off and covered the pots. He could see Luke starting to stand, presumably to get his cousin out of the room before he sneezed a lung out or something. "Luke, leave him be." He added an extra measure of gruffness to his voice to make sure his order got obeyed.

It did. Luke immediately sat back down, and Jessie turned around at last. Bo was now wiping his nose and trying to look like nothing had just happened. Jessie turned his glare on the younger boy. "How many times have I told you that pluggin your nose up like that could make you blow your eardrums out?" He scolded his nephew.

Bo sighed and pushed his plate aside, knowing that he had been caught. "Too many."

"Besides," Jessie continued. "It ain't healthy. If'n your gonna sneeze, just do it and get it over with."

Bo had been trying to keep from sneezing during his lecture but upon hearing that, he turned away, picked up the bandana and covered his nose and mouth to let out the full sneezes he had been holding back. _"Heh-KESHHhhh! Hah-Chuhhh! Heh-HEKT-chuhh!"_ He felt some of the pressure in his head lessen upon his release. He sniffed hard then swallowed as he lowered the now soggy cloth.

Jessie handed Bo a clean handkerchief. "God bless. Now blow your nose."

Bo unfolded the square and did as instructed, then sighed with the relief it brought. "Thanks."

"Why don't we all go outside," Jessie suggested in a firm voice. "I think we have some talking to do."

He got a chorus of 'yes sirs' and both boys followed him out to the front yard. Luke went to lean up against the General and Bo hopped up on the hood, swiping at his nose again with a dry corner of the hanky.

Jessie observed Bo in the fresh air. "Feeling any better now?"

Bo sniffed. "Some." He rubbed at the bridge of his nose with one finger. "It still itches a bit."

Jessie looked from one boy to the other. "When were y'all planning on telling me there was a problem?"

Luke held up his hands, trying to forestall any punishment that might be coming his way. "I didn't know until today. Honest."

Bo sniffed again and swiped his nose on the hanky. "I'm sorry, Uncle Jessie. I shoulda told you as soon as I realized it was getting bad again."

"Darn right you should. There are things we can do for you, and medicines you can get to help you, Bo. Why suffer when there isn't a need?" Jessie scolded his youngest nephew. "Unless you like sneezing your fool head off?"

_"Heh-Keshhh!"_ Bo sneezed as if on cue. "Excuse me. Not particularly, no."

"Hmmpf." Jessie grunted.

Luke had been watching quietly, but something just occurred to him. "Uncle Jessie, those medicines you spoke of, they cost money we ain't got."

Jessie turned his attention to the other boy. "That's not for you to be worryin about."

Luke shrunk back and tried to make himself invisible.

"Now we are all going to Atlanta tomorrow, to see a real doctor and get Bo something to help him." Jessie said, or more like, ordered. "Got any problems with that?" His eyes darted between the two boys.

"No sir," Bo said quietly, he heard Luke echo the same words.

"Good." Jessie said. "Now you two stay out here whilst I air out the kitchen." He moved off, and entered the farmhouse.

Luke watched Bo twist the handkerchief between his hands. They had both gotten off easy and they knew it. Years of being taken to the woodshed with a switch, had taught them the meaning of corporal punishment. It didn't matter how old they were now. Jessie would still take them back there and whip their behinds if he found just cause to do so.

Luke walked over and hopped up on the hood next to his cousin. He remembered doing this when they were kids and one of them; usually Bo; had gotten into serious trouble. They would sit on the hood of Uncle Jessie's car and comfort each other until either the sting from the switch died down or the night fell.

"Now I'm not gonna say I told you so," Luke started, and saw the hint of a smile play on Bo's face. That was also how he had started the conversations in the past. "But what were you thinking? Wouldn't it have just been easier to come and tell him?"

Bo shrugged. "I thought it would go away, I guess. It has been years since I've had these symptoms, I was sorta hopin' it would go away again."

"And when it didn't?" Luke asked.

"Well, then I didn't want to upset anyone. This all started with Daisy's garden and I didn't want her to feel any worse, or have her thinking she was gonna have to destroy it." He ducked his head a bit and crumpled the hanky into a ball. "She works so hard on it."

They sat there for a moment in silence. Then Luke looked over and the farmhouse and sighed. "I wonder where he's gonna get the money."

"I should pay the doctor myself." Bo said. "I can get odd jobs to earn it."

Luke reached over and gave his cousin a small hug then tousled his hair. "We both will."

The tender moment was interrupted with a small sneeze. _"heh-HehhheCHIshh!"_ Bo hadn't expected it, and didn't cover.

Luke wiped his hand on Bo's jeans. "Eww, yuk!" he teased, then smiled. "Bless you."

Bo wiped off his nose and chin. "Thanks."

They stayed outside, watching the sun set, until Jessie called them in to supper. Tomorrow would be a big day, and they were going to have to get to bed early.

As they entered the house, Bo turned to Luke. "Thanks for being there, Cuz."

"That's what kin are for."

The door closed quietly behind them.

End


End file.
